


Ignored, Abhorred

by crimsonseekers



Series: Prowl Week 2020 [5]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers Generation One
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-23
Updated: 2020-04-23
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:41:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,087
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23808571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crimsonseekers/pseuds/crimsonseekers
Summary: Prowl has an encounter with Starscream, and it doesn't exactly play out as he predicted.
Relationships: Prowl/Starscream
Series: Prowl Week 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1699756
Comments: 3
Kudos: 96
Collections: Prowl Week





	Ignored, Abhorred

**Author's Note:**

> It's Prowl Week Day 5: Command, and what better way to celebrate than with our two Second In Commands lowkey borderline scheming?

Prowl, logically, knew that Optimus was never going to accept his plan.

His engine gave a disgruntled snarl as he sped down the road, attempting to burn off some of his seething anger before he (heavily) revised the plan to suit the Prime’s wishes.

_ Human casualties are unacceptable, Prowl. _

But drawing out the Decepticons in such a way could perhaps lead to the end of the War.

_ The loss of lives for our allies and human friends are not worth the end of this conflict. _

But what about the lives of  _ their own soldiers? _

Prowl revved his engine, taking a quick turn off the road toward a nearby forest before he could be caught breaking the speed limits - that would have been a second embarrassing confrontation that he couldn’t bear to deal with at that moment.

It was absolutely  _ infuriating. _

Prowl had joined the Autobots as a tactician to help defend his fellow Cybertronians, to  _ seek revenge for Praxus. _

But no, he thought bitterly as he skidded into a clearing, transforming and angrily throwing his arm against a tree. He was stuck on some alien planet, prioritizing aliens over what could easily lead to the end of a  _ four million year war. _

Primus, he’d accomplished nothing. All he’d done was work himself into a rage and dented his arm in the shape of a tree trunk.

“Well, well, well,” a smug voice whispered into his audial, a finger tracing along the bottom edge of his doorwing  _ just so. _ “You’ve worked yourself into quite a fit, haven’t you, grounded?”

Starscream shrieked as Prowl spun around and punched him.

A few deft movements were all it took for Prowl to pin Starscream to the ground, knee on his chest and hands keeping the seeker’s claws firmly away from himself.

“Starscream,” Prowl greeted coolly. “To what do I owe the displeasure of your presence?”

Starscream scoffed dismissively. “As if you can’t work that out on your own. You have the fancy tactical computer, yes? Figure it out.”

“It’s not hard to discern - you’ve spoken against Megatron again, as you always do.”

“Oh yes, give a prize to the grounded and his incredibly intellectual processor for figuring  _ that _ out.”

“Careful, Starscream,” Prowl growled warningly. “You don’t want to give me any reason to do something we’ll  _ both _ regret.”

“Oh?” Starscream asked, leaning his head up towards Prowl. “And what would that be, officer?”

Prowl frowned, and opened his mouth to retort and-

Starscream suddenly  _ twisted, _ pulling his legs up with a flexibility Prowl had never seen him exhibit, and kicked him off.

Prowl grunted as the Decepticon’s powerful legs sent him flying into a tree, and barely had time to react before Starscream had pounced upon him, wrangling his wrists over his head and around the tree and -

Frag it all.

Prowl was lying in the middle of a forest, wrists bound by  _ stasis cuffs _ around a tree trunk, all with Starscream sitting smugly on his chassis, dangerously resting a thruster heel on one of Prowl’s sensory panels.

“Now,” the seeker crooned, “let’s, try again, shall we?”

Prowl’s engine snarled, and Starscream laughed a hideous laugh, seemingly finding the reaction hilarious.

“Oh, come on,” Starscream drawled. “You don’t find it so horrible to talk to one so similar, do you?”

“We are nothing alike,” Prowl said distastefully. “We hold the same position - nothing more, nothing less.”

“Truly?” Starscream seemed amused. “Tell me then, what are  _ you _ doing out here?”

He scowled.

Starscream tsk’d. “Ignoring you already, is he?”

“Unlike you, Starscream, my input is valued in the Autobot forces. Don’t go projecting your insecurities onto me.”

“Is it projection?” Starscream asked. “Is it truly? When was the last time your tactic was accepted without adjustment? Don’t think I haven’t noticed the substandard quality of the Autobot attack plans since we landed on the mudball.”

“Attack plans require much less effort with the sudden nosedive that Megatron’s sanity has taken recently.”

“Really? Then why not push to end the war?”

Prowl remained silent. Starscream smirked.

“Trust me,” the seeker said, leaning down over Prowl’s face, lazily dragging a claw along one of his doorwings. “It’s only a matter of time. Today you are rebuked, tomorrow you are ignored, next week? Who is to say you won't be hated, condemned,  _ abhorred _ for your methods. Too cowardly, too forward, too many casualties, the plan will always be  _ too much.” _ Starscream shrugged. “Any plan to end the war? They are always  _ just _ enough outside our leaders’ delicate sensibilities to be accepted.”

“We have a command staff, we make decisions based on collective debate, not whatever tyrannical hierarchy the Decepticons has sorted itself into.”

“Ah, yes.” Starscream smiled dangerously and shifted to straddle Prowl, leaning close, sharpened denta dangerously near to his face. “That’s what we all think, isn’t it? But what you need to realize, little Praxian, is that no matter the differences, no matter the opposition you think your  _ Prime _ has, both our factions are personality cults. Tell me, what does your tacnet project for the chances of Autobot survival if Optimus Prime were to fall?”

Prowl glared at Starscream, refusing to answer even as his tacnet spat one out at him.  _ 3.65 percent. _

Starscream dragged his claws along the cables in Prowl’s neck, tipping his head back, scraping his chevron against the bark of the tree.

“We both want this war to end,” Starscream purred, smiling licentiously, face so close to Prowl’s as to almost be touching. The tactician could feel the soft brush of Starscream’s exvents against his lips.

“And what are you suggesting?” Prowl asked coldly. “That we form an alliance?”

“You said it, not me.” Starscream suddenly stood up, threw one last unidentifiable look at Prowl, and sauntered away. “Think about it, why don’t you?” he called over his shoulder. Prowl received a sudden ping to his commlink - Starscream’s frequency. The seeker himself gave Prowl no time to say anything in response before kicking up, folding into his alt, and soaring off.

Prowl grimaced and tugged at his restraints as the roar of the seeker’s engines faded.

The stasis cuffs held tight.

Prowl huffed. He would have to comm for an assist to get free.

He carefully stored Starscream’s frequency to his contacts before pinging Teletraan I.

It was unlikely he would ever use it, and almost traitorous to have Starscream’s personal comm frequency. It was a horrible idea, and would likely land him in trouble if the contact were ever found, but -

Prowl liked keeping his options open.

**Author's Note:**

> This didn't turn out quite how I wanted it to, but I'm still relatively pleased with the end result.


End file.
